Good riddance to the Common Sense Revolution (an oxymoron if there ever was one)-last week Ontarians put an end to eight years of divisive politics that turned citizens into mere taxpayers, decimated our public services, and left our urban centers in disarray.
While the low voter turnout (52 per cent) is worrisome (not to mention reports of students having problems at the polls in several ridings), voters nonetheless handed Dalton McGuinty and the Liberals a decisive mandate to govern, heeding McGuinty’s ‘Choose Change’ message. But while there is reason for optimism, the Liberals are going to have to prove-and quickly-that Ontarians’ hope is well-placed.
It’s no surprise that voters painted Toronto Liberal red, but with much of the 905 turfing key Tory ministers in favour of the Liberals, it’s clear just how deep the dissatisfaction runs in this province-if anything, this election was an SOS to those that govern us: fix our schools, improve our health care, work with our cities to get them moving again. Now that last week’s euphoria has worn off, some Liberals may be wondering exactly what they’ve gotten themselves into.
McGuinty has almost $6 billion worth of promises to live up to. With news that the Tories’ supposed ‘balanced budget’ is actually a deficit, and a large one, no doubt McGuinty will have to move slowly on some of the bigger-ticket items on his list, as he admitted on the campaign trail. And he’s painted himself into a corner by insisting that his government will not raise taxes. But Ontarians have shown that they’re willing to overlook deficits and spend more-at least initially-if it means bringing our services back up to speed.
An election campaign is one thing, governing another. Many of the Liberal ideas that looked so good on paper still need to be translated into practical policy-for example, the promise that most affects us as students, a tuition freeze, has been dismissed as unfeasible by university administrators across the province, including U of T President Robert Birgeneau. While it’s a predictable stance, they do have a point when they ask how that funding (which pays for upgrades, faculty, and other factors) will be replaced.
And that’s only one part of a very expensive platform-Ontarians will bear with the Liberals as they make the transition into government, but it’ll be a short-lived honeymoon if they don’t start making good on their many pledges, while also keeping an eye on the books. Call it a ‘common cents’ revolution.
